St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1887-06-18
FAKIRS' WILES.
An Expert Swindler Tells How the duihple
Public is Taken in.

An Expert Swind1er Tells How the GulHb1e
Public is Taken in.
"You're asking me about fakirs, aln'ty you?
I've been a fakir for twenty years Things
is changin' in fakin' as they are IN every
thing else. The competition is fierce nova
DAYS, tell you, and if you want to make
ANYTHING ont of the wheel or the shell or the
cards YOU We got to be as smart as bank
president. The wheel is a circle marked out
on a table covered with oil-cloth. The table
is four or five feet long by three or tour feet
wide, and divided into parts SO 1t can be
folded up easily. The circle is divided
into little sections painted red, white, and
blue. In the middle of the circle is brass
or steel spear fixed on pivot SO as to swing;
I|akirs follow fairs and clrcuses ana
horse races most generally, though they go
wherever there is crowd, especially OF cOlin-
try people. Well, now, set up my table
on the Lancaster fair grounds say.
bet any one dollar, or two, or any sum
they Ike, against any OF my three coiors.
Suppose there are eighteen color sections
and 81 on each. Red wins. l lose SIX reds,
bat | can pay it out of the other twelve win
nings and be square. But If the game IS
kept up long enough get all the money.
in my table there is a little groove running
from the edge close to the pivot of the spear
spring in the edge is strong iron rod called
the punch. 1t pinches the contrymens $
dollars without their ever suspectlng IT, tOr
the whole arrangement is covered with the
Oil-ClOth. 1t amt often all the cOlors are
covered There will be favorites and you
can bet as much as you like on any color.
Well. have partner, don't you know, for
! wouldn't be no good without partner.
He leans over the table very careless like,
and gets his finger over the, spring IN the
eGge. He keeps his eye on the colors, and
when the majority of the money is laid on
one color he, by gently pressing the spring,
stops the spear on another color-the one
Oh which he has bet. Well, if the crowd
gets folerin him in his bets, why he let's
himself loose, and we rake in big pile
again
But doesn't the crowd suspect him ~
1t would if he stayed long enough. But
after he is there awhile he leaves, and an
other plays the racket; he goes and third
comes. We travel in crowds of three, or
four, or five. All the men run various games
of their own, and after the show divide up
the protits.'
"Of course you always divide fairly?"
Sometimes we do, and sometimes we
don't. Very often there is disputin, and
fights. but everything generally ends IN
peace, because we can only work well in
gangs Instead Of colors on the wheel we
sometimes have figure an eagle, or Gen
eral Jackson. The betting is that the point
OF the spear will stop over the figure. As
there is only one chance out Of a lot, the
1akir gives big odds, sometimes $40 to 81.
But the countryman never gets that money;
tie player on the secret spring IS always
around i'll games like that
of course YOU make lots of money!"
res; sometimes as much as 5000 day.
But easy come easy go. never knew afak1r
who ever put much by. All we want is an
easy life, with good clothes, and plenty to eat
4 \ J,4t t1p 1,n,, wi
town the privilege Of setting up wheels is let
out to the highest bidder \ widow has been
getting the privilege every year. She pays
Tor it 81, 800 and makes from $500 to 81 900
every summer. She runs square game, too.
We work the North in summer, the South in
winter
Now, the shell game?'
The shells is a great game. 1t is played
generally with three half shells Of English
walnuts and little gum ball about as big as
q pea. The ball is made of stuff used in
rrinting-press rollers. I throw out the
shells on the table. Place one Of them over
the ball and move them all about. Where
IS the ball? Bet anybody he can't find it.
Well, some fellow is sure he has followed
me in my movements. He has seen meput
a certain shell over the ball. l took good
care that he noticed it. That was the bait.
shell over the ball. l bet. He picks up the
shell that he had kept his eve on. Well the
ball is not there. II is under another shell.
: win. Now, that's as easy as preachin AS
! move the she'll about | manage to preSss
ringer against the ball, which sticks to the
finger, and quietly place it under another
shell. So You Mr., Smarty was sold again.
The shells bring in money fast. The bets
are big. We have to put up Gberally-,
though, to peoplein charge of fairs and other
such gatherings to be allowed to run. Then
special officers have got to be remembered,
too"
Don't the people who are-are-'
''Swindled ~
Don't they ever grumble ?'
'They do. So it's the business of fakir
then to be cool and quick. I've stood I'M
armed in crowd of 100 or 300 men, all ready
to kill me, and I just laughed away their
threats. But if we are cornered we must
fight our way through, and we do it. But
our aim is to live in quiet and peace We
want to escape attracting any attention.
The shells bring in sometimes $500 in dav.
We don't keep the money about us As fast
as we win we let partner pretend to win it
from us, so that if we should be locked I'D
and any victim want his money back moth
ing is found on us. Sometimes the confed-
crate is a woman. .'-Chicago Tribune.'